3 Books With Neil Pasricha

A few years ago I was lucky enough to cross paths with Wagner Moura. He was on the eve of releasing his film ' ​ Sergio ​ ' after a long run playing Pablo Escobar in the hit series ' ​ Narcos ​ .' Since then I've watched as his acting career has channeled upwards and onwards into feature roles in ' ​ Civil War ​ ', ' ​ Dope Thief ​ ', and his star turn in ' ​ The Secret Agent ​ ' where he won 'Best Actor' at both the Golden Globes and Cannes and was nominated for 'Best Actor' at the Oscars. Over the years Wag ("Vag") has become a dear friend. He's a massive heart, a fellow "boy dad", and he and his wife San live life with such a deep passion for humanity, always fighting for causes, and endlessly following their dreams. I have been inspired watching him and learning from him and in this chat I think you'll get a taste for the massive beauty that lies inside. In this chat we discuss the hinterlands of Brazil, how we stand up for what we believe in, creating art in times of crisis, and, of course, the incredible Wagner Moura's 3 most formative books. Let's flip back to Chapter 52 now....

Happy full moon, everybody! Humans are the most social species on the planet. So ... why don't we act like it? Why is loneliness rising? Why are we increasingly entombed in echo chambers? What is preventing us from connecting? Enter Nick Epley, Professor of Behavioral Science at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and one of the world's leading researchers on the psychology of social interaction. Nick grew up in rural Iowa, lives in Chicago with his family, and has spent his career asking a deceptively simple question: Why do the most social creatures on Earth often choose to be less social than they could be? Nick is the author of ' Mindwise: Why We Misunderstand What Others Think, Believe, Feel, and Want ', and his newest book, ' A Little More Social: How Small Choices Create Unexpected Happiness, Health, and Connection '. His research spans social cognition, perspective-taking, loneliness, anthropomorphism, and why our judgments about people are so often inaccurate. Nick has been featured in The New York Times , The Wall Street Journal , and on NPR . His course at Booth, ' Designing a Good Life ', is an ethics course exploring how to build lives that are ethical, successful, and genuinely fulfilling, and it's among the school's most sought-after classes. Pull up a chair and let's talk about the differences between introversion and extroversion, the ethics of a good life, parenting five children (yes, five!), how technology is affecting the ways we socialize, the uncertainty effect, finding wisdom, and of course… Nick Epley's 3 most formative books. Let's flip the page to chapter 164 now…

Hey everybody, Welcome to Chapter 50 of 3 Books! We're going to hang out on a hotel room couch in Vancouver for a little bit of calm. I am very excited to have you on the couch beside me and the absolutely incredible Marcus Buckingham . Who is Marcus? Well, if you're in the business world, you've probably heard of him. Why? Well, he's written books sitting on every executive's bookshelf and his assessments and work are used everywhere. Marcus Buckingham is a global researcher and thought leader focused on unlocking people's strengths, increasing their performance, and pioneering the future of how people work. How did Marcus end up doing this job? Well, after working as Senior Researcher inside Gallup for a couple of decades he co-authored some of the most popular business books of all time including ' First Break All The Rules ', ' Now Discover Your Strengths ', and his bestseller, ' Love + Work: How to Find What You Love, Love What You Do, and Do It for the Rest of Your Life '. What does Marcus do now? He is currently focusing on his book, ' Design Love In ', and leading his coaching and education firm, the Buckingham Institute . I love the optimism behind his work. That people are born as acorns, with an imprint inside them on what they could be, and what their true potential could lead them to. I sat down with Marcus overlooking the foggy mountains over Vancouver Harbour just before he took to the stage for the headlining slot at The Art of Leadership . We cover a lot of topics in this chapter including: How do we learn to truly see our children? How can the education system be improved? How do we avoid tribalism? What is the real definition of weird? What's the single best question to ask yourself when trying to articulate your strengths? And how can we find our own unique way to draw strength and love from life? I found Marcus to be brave, vulnerable, and inspiring in this conversation. Years ago, when I worked at Walmart, we used Marcus's books and videos in our training sessions. Getting a chance to sit down with him many years later to discuss his 3 most formative books was a rare treat. Let's go…

Happy Buck Moon, everyone! As we sink into the summer heat, I'm thrilled to welcome Jon Klassen on 3 Books ! Jon is a Canadian born, LA living author and illustrator whose darkly humorous, minimalist storytelling has helped define contemporary children's literature. In 2016, Jon concluded his breakout book series ' The Hat Trilogy ', which features ' I Want My Hat Back' , ' This Is Not My Hat' , and ' We Found a Hat. ' 'This Is Not My Hat' was the first book to ever win both the American Library Association's Caldecott Medal and the British Kate Greenaway Medal . Jon's books have now sold over 12 million copies (!) and he might be the most decorated children's book author alive. About a month after we recorded this conversation, Jon won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award —a prestigious children's and young adult book award that he accepted from Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden at a ceremony in Stockholm . Nobody deserves this award more than Jon. He is a genius wordsmith, a remarkable illustrator, and a passionate father of two. In this chapter, we talk about Jon's writing routine, what makes a good illustration, the value of accepting fear when writing, how to draw a lying turtle, comfort with contradiction, men's fashion tips, what makes a good children's book, the publishing industry, and of course… Jon's 3 most formative books. Let's flip the page to chapter 163 now…

I sat down with Dr. Andrea Sereda at the Sherbourne Health Centre on the east side of downtown Toronto, an area of the city sometimes known for its challenges with drug abuse. Who is Dr. Andrea Sereda? She is a family physician who practices street outreach medicine and provides care through the London InterCommunity Health Centre in London, Ontario. She works with the emergency safer supply substitution program, prescribing hydromorphone, an opioid used by injection drug users to reduce the risk of contaminated street drugs. Wait! What? Yes, on the face of it, Dr. Andrea Sereda gives drugs to drug users but there is a lot more to the story. We are going right to the front lines of the opioid epidemic which, even before the end of this conversation, will take 10 lives in North America alone. (To illustrate the issue more deeply, 8,048 Americans died of opioid related drug overdoses in 1999. What about now? Well, the number was approximately 70,000 drug overdose deaths last year.) It will take ingenuity, creativity, and passion to address this issue. As you'll hear, Dr. Andrea Sereda offers all three in spades. Her views are often provocative, sometimes controversial, and she will argue that drugs should be decriminalized and why we should indeed give drugs to drug users. What about the challenges to these ideas? The critics? The controversies? We get into that, too. And we are fortunate enough to use Andrea's three most formative books as a launchpad into this conversation. I am so grateful to Dr. Andrea Sereda for sharing so much of her life, her journey, and her practice with all of us. I find her and her work incredibly challenging, intriguing, and inspiring. I hope you do, too.

Happy Strawberry Moon, everyone! As we ease into summer and the hydrangeas and garden roses begin blooming here in Toronto, I find myself struck by the awe and beauty that quietly surrounds us each day. There's so much science behind how we experience the world. My guest on this moon's chapter of 3 Books has spent his career proving just that. Join me in welcoming one of the world's leading experts on happiness and human potential, a Harvard-trained positive psychologist and researcher whose ​ TED Talk ​ has been watched over 30 million (!) times, and a genuinely warm human I am proud to call a friend ... Mr. Shawn Achor! (pronounced like "acorn" without the n, btw!) I first met Shawn in Abu Dhabi, years ago, when we were both invited to speak to the Royal Family of the United Arab Emirates. I arrived a few days early, for dress rehearsals, long dinners, and meet-and-greets with various extended family members, and then Shawn showed up. He flew in, crushed it onstage, dropped research studies like he'd memorized all of Google Scholar, and immediately flew out. I was left thinking: Who was that masked man? Well, over the years we became friends, and he was kind enough to blurb ' ​ The Happiness Equation ​ ' after selling a million copies of his own wonderful book, ' ​ The Happiness Advantage ​ ' . And then ... where did he go? Shawn just sort of ... disappeared. I found out why in his new book, ' ​ The Power of Beliefs ​ '. After his daughter Zoë was born three months early, spending 50 days in the NICU, Shawn decided to take a break—six years of no media, no international talks, no new books. Six years! But Shawn is still Shawn. An amiable son of an English teacher and a neuroscience professor, with multiple Harvard degrees, and a witty, research-centric writing style that is precise and uniquely compassionate. Tune in as we discuss Shawn's new book, his seven core beliefs (and their seven scars), the power of the placebo effect, what six years of "disappearing" taught him about parenting and living a more meaningful life, the psychology of awe, the cost of measuring your worth through comparison, and of course ... the brilliant Shawn Achor's 3 most formative books. Let's flip the page to Chapter 162 now...

On a pair of folding lawn chairs on his front porch in Toronto's Roncesvalles neighborhood, I sat down with my friend Michael Bungay Stanier. Michael's mind is like a box that you open and a whole bunch of springs suddenly fly out in all directions. Here's a bit of his biography to give you a taste of this guy: "I've never quite fit the traditional mold, and honestly, I think that's been the advantage that has shaped my life. Smart and successful don't have to look one way. But making space for that – for different voices, different ambitions, different ways of moving through the world – takes real work. That's my work. That's the mark I want to make on the world: helping people figure out what matters most to them and how to get more of that." Should we stop there? No, I'll keep going. Michael is an Australian who went to Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. There, he met a beautiful Canadian woman who he fell in love with and followed back to Canada. He founded a company called Box of Crayons which teaches 10-minute coaching strategies so busy managers can build stronger teams. Most recently, he also founded MBS Works , a digital platform featuring all his books, courses, keynotes, and tools focused on individuals who want to positively change their lives. He has won numerous awards for Coach of the Year and wrote a book called ' The Coaching Habit ' which turned into a huge phenomenon with (in only 3+ years) over 700,000 copies sold and over 2000 Amazon reviews. (Sidenote: The book was published by Jesse Finkelstein of Page Two Publishing , our guest in Chapter 23 ) Michael is also the author of ' Do More Great Work ,' ' How to Begin ', ' How to Work with (Almost) Anyone ', and ' The Advice Trap .' I love Michael Bungay Stanier. He's one of the most fascinating minds in my life, and I feel so grateful and honored to call him a friend. I hope you fall in love with him too. In this chapter, we talk about simplifying complex things, finding curiosity, and of course, his three most formative books. So pull up a lawn chair! And let's flip the page back to Chapter 48 now....

Happy blue moon, everyone! Yes, it is indeed the second full moon of the month which brings us a second May chapter of 3 Books. This one features an author I've been hoping to have on our show for years. Join me in welcoming the Booker Prize–winning novelist, deeply philosophical storyteller, and one of Canada's most distinctive literary voices ... Mr. Yann Martel! Yann is best known for ' Life of Pi' , the global phenomenon that won The Booker Prize in 2002 , sold over 15 million copies worldwide, and was later adapted into an Academy Award–winning film . Born in Salamanca, Spain in 1963, Yann spent his childhood in Spain, Portugal, Alaska, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Canada. Yann's work is deeply shaped by a pulsing curiosity, philosophy, and research. He journeyed through India while developing 'Life of Pi', visited Holocaust memorial sites while writing ' Beatrice and Virgil ', and even launched a "guerilla book club" called ' 101 Letters to a Prime Minister ', where he mailed books to former Prime Minister Stephen Harper every two weeks for four years. Yann's newest novel, ' Son of Nobody ', is a (new!) ancient retelling of the Trojan War told through the modern lens of a Canadian researcher who discovers this poem while exploring themes of homesickness, regret, ambition, love, and grief. Tune in as we discuss Yann's writing routines, the importance of stories, AI in the world of publishing, racism in Australia, art as a co-creation between writer and reader, the beauty of the prairies, and of course, Yann Martel's most formative books... Let's flip the page to Chapter 161 now...

Nestled into a beautiful century-old brownstone in Park Slope, Brooklyn, I spoke with the amazing Dr. Laura Markham —a preacher of love, letting love in, sending love out, and using that as a way to deepen our connection with ourselves and our children. Who is Dr. Laura Markham? She's a Columbia-trained clinical psychologist, founder and editor at PeacefulParentHappyKids.com , author of six parenting books including my favorite, Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids, a parenting expert, and a life-changer for many, many families—including mine. (You'll hear what my wife Leslie thinks at the beginning of this chapter!) Dr. Laura Markham translates proven science into practical and simple solutions for living an intentional life. So in Chapter 46, let's pause and choose how we respond to help drive a movement toward love and compassion. I deeply resonate with Dr. Laura Markham's work because I feel like the higher place she leads us toward is the same place I want 3 Books to lead us toward. In this chapter, we chat about the complexities of parenting and how we can be more present as parents. Dr. Laura Markham shares many valuable insights, from communicating through play, navigating our own traumas, mastering the skill of sending love to strangers, and how we need to develop a closer relationship with death. And, of course, we talk about Dr. Laura Markham's 3 most formative books. Let's flip back to Chapter 46 now....

Happy ​ Flower Moon ​ , everyone! Up in Toronto we're experiencing a wonderful blooming, a beautiful ​ bird migration ​ , and lots of slowly-getting-warmer days as we inch towards summer. With this warm spring breeze I'm thrilled to welcome our latest 3 Books guest: a luminous force in publishing, a powerhouse editor-turned-author, and a wonderful storyteller ... the one and only ​ Nita ​ ​ Prose ​ ! Today Nita is best known for her ​ Molly the Maid ​ mystery series which features three main titles and a holiday edition—' ​ The Maid ​ , ' ' ​ The ​ ​ ​ ​ Mystery Guest ​ , ' ' ​ The Mistletoe Mystery ​ , ' and ' ​ The Maid's Secret ​ '—which have collectively sold over 2 million copies. Raised in Ontario's Simcoe County, Nita began her career by contributing to literary magazines, became a production editor with HarperCollins, and then became a Senior Editor at Doubleday. She then held the lofty publishing position of Vice President and Editorial Director at Simon & Schuster Canada and oversaw titles by authors like Rupi Kaur ( ​ @rupikaur_ ​ ), Kate Morton ( ​ @katemortonauthor ​ ), Iain Reid ( ​ @tidydissolve ​ ), and... me! Nita was the editor of my book on resilience ' ​ You Are Awesome: How To Navigate Change, Wrestle with Failure, and Live an Intentional Life ​ ' which came out in 2019 and my book on gratitude and community ' ​ Our Book Of Awesome ​ ,' which came out in 2022. Nita has since left publishing to write full-time and today her phenomenal career and perspectives offer a true publishing and writing masterclass. Tune in as we discuss: What does an editor actually do? How do you get a job in publishing? What writing routines structure Nita's stories? Why might you keep the novel you're writing a secret from your long-term partner? How do you write an allegory? And (of course!) which 3 books most shaped her life? We talk about creating characters grounded in emotional truths, measuring success within the labyrinth-like writing industry, the importance of reading across genres, and much, much more. Let's flip the page to Chapter 160 now...

Happy new moon, everybody! Today we fly down to the hills of Calabasas, California, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, where I sat behind a microphone at a walnut desk across from the one and only Rich Roll. Rich went to Stanford and Cornell and was a national athlete in swimming before his career was cut short by a decade-long struggle with alcohol—eventually landing him in jail and rehab. On the eve of his 40th birthday, as he walked up the stairs he was left totally winded… and decided it was time to make a change. The next day, Rich overhauled his life. He switched to a 100% vegan, plant-based diet, grabbed his running shoes, jumped back into the pool, and two years later, fueled only by plants and after losing 50 pounds, he became the first vegan to ever compete in the 320-mile ultra-marathon and finished as the 3rd fastest American in the race. Are you kidding me?? He then went on to complete five Ironman Triathlons on five islands of Hawaii in one week! In 2012, he wrote his inspirational memoir ​ 'Finding Ultra: Rejecting Middle Age, Becoming One of the World's Fittest Men, and Discovering Myself' ​ , which became a bestseller upon its release. It's a fantastic book and memoir. I've read it. I loved it and can't recommend it enough. In 2013, he launched ​ The Rich Roll Podcast ​ which is honestly my favorite podcast on the planet. Rich hangs out at the edge of personal growth and development and offers deep exploration—what he calls "a weekly aural dance"— with guests like ​ Yuval Noah ​ ​ Harari ​ , ​ Malala Yousafzai ​ , and, yes, ​ even me ​ ! If you know Rich this classic chat is a way to see him from a new side by learning about which books make him tick ... and if you don't know him yet, well, you're in for a treat. He's a gem and I think after the chat you'll want to keep hanging out with him on ​ YouTube ​ or ​ Instagram ​ . Pull up an extra chair and grab a seat at our table!

We welcome global gallivant and raging bibliophile Eve Harlow on 3 Books! Born in Russia, raised in Israel, living in Canada and the U.S., Eve Harlow is a talented actress best known for roles in The 100 , Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Night Agent , and her current star turn as Dr. Ingrid Derian in Watson , the medical-mystery thriller inspired by stories of Sherlock Holmes. Somehow between her busy acting schedule, Eve finds time to read a book a week. She's a library junkie, a reading phenom, and posts stacks of her latest reads @eveharlow between red carpet shots and behind-the-scenes clips from her shows. This is a conversation for all of us who aspire to grow our love of reading books amidst the digital deluge. We live in worlds designed to tease our brains into shallow skimming. So how does Eve do it? What systems does she use? How does she think about her reading life? And (of course!) which 3 books shaped her more than any others? We talk about reading habits, magic realism, identity in a politically robust and privacy-eroded world, deliberate daydreaming, building resilience, and much, much more. Pull up a chair and join us in this bookish conversation. Let's flip the page to Chapter 159 now...

Join me on the couch in Molly Bloom's hotel room at the Four Seasons in downtown Toronto. Molly began her career as a world-class skier, but while training as a pre-teen was diagnosed with severe scoliosis. Her doctor told her she could never ski again, but even as a pre-teen Molly had incredible strength of mind and she ended up back on the slopes only a year after her surgery. By age 21, she was ranked #3 in North America. She then took off to LA and began running one of the most exclusive, high-stakes, underground poker games in the world, featuring players like Alex Rodriguez, Tobey Maguire, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Affleck, and was raking in millions of dollars per year. Then what happened? The feds went after her! The mafia went after her! And there was a dramatic takedown. While awaiting sentencing, she wrote her life's story in her memoir, Molly's Game . That book became a bestseller and was turned into a movie written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, writer of The West Wing and The Social Network , starring Jessica Chastain (as Molly), Idris Elba, and Kevin Costner. Molly has been featured on Ellen , NPR , LA Times , VICE , and many more. But beneath the surface is a story that, as she says in this chapter, has never been shared before. There was a journey happening inside Molly that forced her to look at the downsides of her ambition and addictive personality. So get into something comfy, grab a seat between us, and let's talk about life altering public defeat, how a memoir transforms into an action-packed Hollywood feature, the liberty in losing everything, finding the 'monetizable asset' in your life, and Molly's 3 most formative books. Let's flip the page back to Chapter 42 now....

​ Sonja Lyubomirsky ​ is one of the most influential happiness researchers of our time. Sonja moved to the United States from Moscow at age 9 in the 70s. She went to Harvard and Stanford in the 80s and began studying happiness in 1989 ... longer than almost anyone else alive! Positive psychology wasn't "founded" by ​ Martin Seligman ​ and ​ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi ​ for another decade. Sonja has published hundreds of papers including her ​ Most Cited 2005 paper ​ which defined the field by flipping a long-held assumption on its head: That happiness doesn't follow success but causes it. Sonja is now following up her bestsellers ' ​ The How of Happiness ​ ' and ' ​ The Myths Of Happiness ​ ' with a new book called ' ​ How to Feel Loved ​ ', a joint effort co-written with relationship expert ​ Dr. Harry Reis ​ , which is a culmination of 30 years of research that all point to one central truth: that feeling loved (not just being loved!) is a crucial ingredient of happiness. In this conversation we talk about the four horsemen that can ruin a marriage, what MDMA does to our brains, why small talk doesn't build connection, the best advice for dating, how our brains respond to love, the single best way to feel happier today, and, of course, the eminent Professor Sonja Lyubomirsky's 3 most formative books. Let's flip the page to Chapter 158 now...

A few years ago I was in LA and I went with my friend Chad to a "Judd Apatow and friends" comedy show where I was blown away by the lineup he brought out. Ray Romano! Zach Galifianakis! And, of course, the incredible Pete Holmes. Pete was my favorite comic that night. I have loved his comedy for years! And his book ' ​ Comedy Sex God ​ ' was a wonderful read. My parents are Hindu but I grew up in the secular suburbs of Toronto being exposed to many different religions. Pete was very religious, and then wasn't, and now is again ... in this thoughtful, examining, spiritual way. His book, which is essentially his memoir, chronicles his journey through faith with lots of laughs and his trademark mind-expanding insights along the way. Pete's podcast ​ You Made It Weird ​ is a comedic exploration of the meaning of life, with guests ranging from ​ Ryan Holiday ​ to ​ Mayim Bialik ​ to ​ Ben Stiller ​ . Pete also starred in the HBO show ​ Crashing ​ which he executive produced with Judd Apatow. And, big news, he is currently touring! He's in ​ Miami ​ , ​ LA ​ , ​ Royal Oaks ​ , ​ Irving ​ , ​ Madison ​ , and ​ Denver ​ before the summer. Check out his comedy specials: ​ Impregnated with Wonder ​ (2011), ​ Nice Try, The Devil ​ (2013), ​ Faces and Sounds ​ (2016), ​ Dirty Clean ​ (2018), and ​ I Am Not For Everyone ​ (2023). So flip the page back to Chapter 40 of 3 Books and talk about why we withhold love, why myths are always true and sometimes really happen, why our brains want certainty but our hearts are comfortable with mystery, the salty sweet conundrum of life, and, of course, Pete's 3 most formative books. I hope you enjoy this classic chapter with Pete Holmes.

Paul Hawken is a brilliant thinker, author, activist, and elder who masterfully distills wisdom about our planetary home. I remember hearing Paul's 2009 commencement speech called " ​ You Are Brilliant and The Earth is Hiring ​ " where he said "You are going to have to figure out what it means to be a human being on Earth at a time when every living system is declining and the rate of decline is accelerating." Paul is the author of nine bestselling books including ' ​ Drawdown ​ ', ' ​ Regeneration ​ ', and his latest book ' ​ Carbon, The Book of Life ​ '—an incredible book that came out in 2025 and masterfully distills endless planetary wisdom into simple truths we all need to hear. (I included it in ' ​ The Very Best Books I Read in 2025 ​ .') Grab a seat between us and let's talk about how nature cooperates, why fighting climate change is the wrong metaphor, why the climate crisis is a human crisis, how jargon disconnects, and what decades of activism have taught Paul about being human. This conversation with a sage of sages stuck with me and I think it'll stick with you. Let's flip the page into Chapter 157 now ...

Thirteen years ago I was surfing online when I stumbled on a blog post called " ​ How To Read More — A Lot More ​ " by someone I'd never heard of named Ryan Holiday. I started reading the post and got sucked in. He had a point! Many great points, actually. And he was young. 26 years old! A 26-year-old young man telling the world to read more books? In an era where most twenty-something men read, uh, none? I found Ryan to be a breath of fresh air. I immediately began to copy everything he did! He launched a ​ monthly book club ​ . I launched a ​ monthly book club ​ ! (With his blessing, of course.) He was talking about reading fifty then a hundred and then hundreds of books a year. Well, I started reading five books and then ten books and then fifty books a year. I began cancelling news subscriptions and consciously put my phone away. I installed a bookshelf at my front door. I moved my TV to the basement! And, of course, I started this podcast—all about reading. In a way 3 Books would not exist without Ryan Holiday. In some ways I can probably trace my rediscovered passion for reading all the way back to that 2013 blog post. But Ryan is not just a blogger anymore. He's not just a writer guy on the internet anymore. Ryan Holiday has sold over 10 million books (!) and essentially leads the repopularization of stoic philosophy. Some of his books include ' ​ The Obstacle Is The Way ​ ', ' ​ Ego Is The Enemy ​ ', ' ​ Stillness Is The Key ​ ', ' ​ Discipline is Destiny ​ ', and his new book, out just a few months ago, ' ​ Wisdom Takes Work ​ '. Ryan also runs ​ DailyStoic.com ​ , the consulting company ​ Brass Check ​ , ​ Daily Dad ​ , and ​ The Painted Porch ​ indie bookstore in Bastrop, Texas. He and his wife Sam live with their two sons in nearby Austin. He's become a friend and I have definitely caught his bug. So in Chapter 38 of 3 Books we're going to fly down to Ryan's home in Austin and get 4 of his most formative books. (You'll hear why on the show.) Among other things Ryan shares how to decide who to trust, how he got fired from his first job, and why we shouldn't turn parenting into a job. I hope you enjoy this classic chapter of 3 Books with Mr. Ryan Holiday.

Africa is the world's second largest continent—by land and population! One and a half billion people spread across fifty-five countries. It's huge! Even a trip there, even many trips there, can only scratch the surface. But we're trying! My mum was born in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1950, and I recently returned from my first journey to Africa where I met incredible people and heard remarkable stories. In this third African chapter of 3 Books I sat down with Salim Amin where we discuss what it means to be a great citizen in the world today and how leading with compassion and curiosity can be some of the balm the world needs. As some background Salim's father Mo Amin lived from 1943 to 1996 and at his peak was the single most well-known photographer ... in the world! His photos of the 1984 Ethiopian famine were the basis of the famous Live Aid concert and directly responsible for saving millions of lives. Salim is going to share some of the most memorable stories from his dad's remarkable career and legacy ... all of which happened before he tragically died in a hijacked plane that crashed into the Indian Ocean. Today Salim is the CEO of Camerapix, the legendary (and first-ever!) African media agency, which owns all his dad's photos—of dictators, wildlife, assassinations, and more—and he's become a documentary filmmaker, producer, author, journalist, and TV host in his own right. Salim's documentary "Mo & Me" won over a dozen prestigious awards including the "Grand Jury Prize" at the New York Film Festival and I loved his stunning photo book "Kenya: Through My Father's Eyes". I was thrilled to sit down in-person—in Nairobi!—with Salim, at the Camerapix office, to discuss legacy, identity, fatherhood, purpose, and formative books. There are some absolutely wild stories in this chat you won't soon forget! Let's flip the page into Chapter 156 now...

Happy Solstice, everyone! In the northern hemisphere today we have the least amount of daylight of any day of the year. Below the equator it has the most! And as we do every December solstice it's time for our annual "Best Of" episode of 3 Books . 3 Books is our award-winning 22-year-long conversation to uncover and discuss the 1000 most formative books in the world ... 3 books at a time. This year we recorded shows in Nairobi, Ottawa, Del Mar, and even a few on the street ... journeying to collect stories and lessons that can help us all live richer lives of meaning and intention. Featuring clips from... ​ Nick Sweetman ​ - Street muralist ​ Lindyman ​ - Lindy Effect evangelist ​ Emily Nagoski ​ - Sex educator ​ Nickisha ​ - Dog walker ​ Ginny Yurich ​ - Founder of ' ​ 1000 Hours Outside ​ ' ​ John and Alison ​ - Booksellers, ​ Camino Books ​ , Del Mar, CA ​ Jean Chrétien ​ - Former Canadian Prime Minister ​ The Holderness Family ​ - YouTubers and authors ' ​ ADHD is Awesome ​ ' ​ Robin Sloan ​ - Novelist, ' ​ Moonbound ​ ' / ' ​ Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore ​ ' ​ Carl Honoré ​ - Author, ' ​ In Praise of Slowness ​ ' ​ Peter Kimani ​ - Novelist, ' ​ Dance of the Jakaranda ​ ' ​ Abdullahi Bulle ​ - Bookseller, ​ Nuria Books ​ , Nairobi, Kenya Thank you for being a 3 Booker and spending time with our incredible community of book lovers spread across the world. Listen on your walk, drive, or workout, on your own, or with a friend, and let's continue to celebrate the awe in this world while striving to live our lives the best we can...

Who we are is a function of where we are. Do you agree with that? Who you are depends on where you are. We're different people in different places, right? You're different in the board room than you are on vacation. You're different with your parents than you are with your kids. I'm different hanging out with Malcolm Gladwell in his West Village apartment than I am sitting in my basement as I type up a little note about it. That theme is one that we get to open up in this chapter of 3 Books with the one and only ​ Malcolm Gladwell ​ . I flew down to New York and joined Malcolm at his place where we settled around a table surrounded by books. Top to bottom! Floor to ceiling! And, no big deal, all hardcovers. "This is a fraction of my books, I should say," he told me as we began the chat. We talk about raising nerds in a world forcing us into being average, how to find tribes where we truly fit in, who Malcolm thinks is the best non-fiction author alive, why thrillers are instructive, what Malcolm's biggest advice is for aspiring authors, and, of course, his 3 most formative books. It was a rare treat to sit down with Malcolm Gladwell in this classic chapter of 3 Books ...